Brown must drop wage demands for Man Utd stay

The Mail on Sunday says Brown, 28, has been locked in contract talks since apparently turning down a four-year deal in December.

His contract runs out this summer and Brown's representatives insist their player deserves a hefty pay rise at the end of a season in which he has been a right-back regular in place of injured Gary Neville and made Fabio Capello's first England team ahead of Micah Richards.

Brown was being lined up for a move to Newcastle in January but the offer of £800,000 for a player valued by his club at £3million was branded derisory.

His commitment was highlighted when he played in last Sunday's Manchester derby just three days after his father had died.